There's a Double Standard for Oral Sex

Apparently, gender equality has not reached the bedroom—at least for teens who are having oral sex. A new study in the Journal of Sex Research found that boys and girls ages 16 to 18 view fellatio and cunnilingus very differently.

Most of the 71 interviewees considered oral sex to be a bigger deal when the recipient was female, and they felt it was easier for men to receive oral sex and harder for them to give it. While boys just didn't perform oral sex if they didn't feel like it, girls pushed through and found ways to make it more pleasant. And girls and boys alike expressed negative views of female genitalia. Sigh.

And yet, there's hope! According to Indiana University's National Survey of Sexual Health and Behavior, this pattern reverses with age. Women were indeed more likely than men to give oral sex over the course of the past year at younger ages, with the discrepancy peaking at 74 percent vs. 55 percent at ages 20 to 24, but the ratio flipped by ages 30 to 39, when 69 percent of men and 59 percent of women reported giving oral sex over the past year.

So if you're in your early 20s, things might look bleak right now, but at least you've got something to look forward to.